'Live On Air' Wants You Famous and Well Fed

PROSPECT HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN — Joe Barbour said the idea came to him in 1998, when he watched "The Truman Show."

The film's protagonist, Truman, has his entire life broadcast live 24/7 for the whole world to see, and he's the only one who doesn't know it.

Barbour said he wanted to bring that concept to a dining establishment — except this time, the stars (i.e., the diners and staff) would be only too happy to be filmed.

Barbour said he had to wait until technology made live streaming video affordable, a day that has now arrived with Periscope, Facebook Live and YouTube.

And so, Live On Air has arrived as well, a new restaurant opening at 335 Flatbush Ave. this November.

Inside, the space (still under construction) is modern and unassuming. The menu, Barbour told Patch, will offer American bistro-style classics with a canjun influence, put together by Louisiana-born head chef Bobby Bouyer.

Live On Air will be open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 12 a.m. or 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturday. Its brunch, lunch and dinner offerings will include chicken and waffles, Creole-style shrimp dishes, shrimp po' boy sandwiches, and other Louisiana specials, Barbour said. After the restaurant secures its liquor license (given the green light on Monday by Community Board 8's licensing committee), its bar will serve beer and cocktails as well.

But the entrepreneur seems even more focused on what will happen around the food — and for that to make sense, Barbour explained his back story. Born in Prospect Heights, the owner said he attended Laguardia High School of Music Art and Performing Arts. Barbour said his father was the head bartender at the Playboy Club in New York for 23 years. He spent 13 years working and eventually running Las Vegas nightclub Body English, and then founded a management company that handled marketing for the Hard Rock Hotel San Diego.

What he learned, he said, was that "the restaurant industry and the night life industry had stagnated," with millennials uninterested in overly loud, over-priced clubs. But they evidently are very interested in performing on social media — as is Barbour himself.

Live on Air will pull all those threads together, he said, becoming the world's first "live broadcast reality restaurant."

"We want to actually be an authentic reality show," he said, a place that will "allow the customers to share their perspectives with the world."

The live streaming shows will continue throughout the day and night, during which hosts, staff members and Barbour himself will bring up guests to be interviewed and share themselves with the audience. (That said, normal dining will continue, as the shows won't be amplified throughout the restaurant.)

Streamed evening entertainment is planned as well, including a night of live karaoke and open-mic comedy.

Plus, Chef Bouyer plans to host a live cooking show broadcast from the kitchen, interacting with diners while he does so.

And one more thing: everyone who broadcasts their own live stream from the restaurant will get 10 percent off their tab.

For now, Barbour is treating his future Prospect Heights location as a proof-of-concept.

"We want to be a global brand," he said, with locations around the world broadcasting themselves and their diners in streaming synergy.

The owner says he'll eventually hire 24 full-time staffers, and is looking for applicants in the entertainment industry. He encouraged those interested in applying to follow the restaurant's social media accounts for updates.

Pictured at top: Joe Barbour inside Live On Air. Photo by John V. Santore